The Black Fat Cat
by JendallRush
Summary: In which MJ works at a coffee shop (and Peter tries to help her out with her new job).
1. Mary Jane

Mary Jane glanced at the mirror as she pulled her hair up in a ponytail and put on her name tag. She couldn't help but to think that she looked horrible in her work outfit, but it was as good as it could get with a green apron and a green cap (let's remember she's working _indoors_). But the pay was good, and the whole place smelled like coffee, so what the hell.

That's right, Mary Jane Watson had gotten herself a job at a coffee shop; The Black Fat Cat. She found that name very funny for some reason, yet she couldn't quite put a finger on it.

She watched as her partner opened the front door and turned around the _'We're Closed' _sign to _'Now Open!'._ Her partner, Harry, seemed like a weird kid. Like a weird, twenty year-old kid. He didn't know how to do many things, hence why he worked at a coffee shop with a klutz like Mary Jane. Apparently, he had never prepared _coffee _before working there. She wondered to herself how he even got _hired _there. But then again, they hired her. Not that she was completely useless (like Harry), no. But when she went to the interview, she expected to be asked to _make coffee_ or _count money_, or any other kind of things she'd be doing there. They only made sure she spoke english.

But at least now Harry knew how to prepare coffee, or that she hoped, because he told her he'd been working there for more than three months. If he could keep the job, she too.

Actually, what was more surprising about the whole thing (besides the fact that she had managed to actually not look that bad in her work outfit, somehow) was that she wanted to be an actress. A dancer, a singer. She was meant to shine in Broadway, or that she told everyone. Well, a new friend of hers, Felicia, made a bet, which she lost miserably to. She told her that the coffee shop was some sort of losing-bets magnet, as she had lost a bet to a 'friend' of hers and ended up naming it the way it was. Mary pretended to understand what she was talking about.

Anyway, the shop opened, which meant she officially started working at it. Just as she was wondering how long it would take for someone to come in, the door swung open, making the tiny little bell on top of it ring. A costumer.

She didn't really mean to say it out loud.

"Already?" But she did.

The costumer, a dark brown haired boy, about her age, with apparently no knowledge of the use of a comb, arched an eyebrow at her.

"Wow. Someone's eager to sell a lot on her first day." He answered.

She felt a blush creep through her cheeks but she quickly shook her head. She wasn't going to be intimidate by some hipster with bad taste in rock indie shirts.

"How do you know it's my first day?"

He chuckled.

"I am, actually, a frequent costumer. I come here almost everyday."

"_Or _night. It's surprising to see you under daylight, Parker. I almost thought you were a vampire or something." She spun around to see Harry casually talking to that Parker guy.

"Oh, come on, you're over reacting." They both chuckled

"Maybe."

Harry's phone started ringing and by the look on his face, and the loud voice on the other end, she knew it was must have been their boss.

"Felicia."

See?

"Yes, I know- But what about- Okay, okay." Harry walked around and waved his hand in the air as he talked. He hung up and turned to Mary Jane with an apologetic look. She gulped.

"Mary, I'm sorry. Felicia wants me to take care of a few things downtown and I doubt I'll be able to get back here on time. I have to go, or, well, _or else_."

She knew or else. She had heard it from her former bosses many, many times before. Yet, with Felicia, she felt like it meant something a lot worse. _Else._

Before she could nod her head or question him, or say something, the long forgotten costumer talked to her.

"Hey, I'm an easy one. I'll help you."

Harry grinned and clapped his hands. "See? You've got everything under control already, and I haven't even left! Haha, well, bye."  
He walked out, practically ran out, and Mary Jane wondered to herself what kind of demon Felicia must be to scare off her employees that way?

"So...coffee."

She turned to the Parker guy —the costumer, and smiled sarcastically.

"May I help you?" There was something about the guy that pissed her off, just a little.

"Large mocha please."

"Just a sec." She turned around and prepared the coffee as she was asked. When she turned back he had his elbows propped on the counter.

"There you go," She said as she handed him the cup and the ticket,"it'll be $3.10."

He pulled out a dollar and a bunch of coins.

"I think that's it."

She smiled again, trying to kill him with her look and counted one by one the coins.

"Exact. Thank you."

He winked an eye at her and went to sit down at a small, one-person table. What was that supposed to even mean? That he was oh so smart he gave her the exact amount with bunch of pennies? That was probably just luck. Or maybe he even _knew_ how much money he had in his pocket and pretended not to?

She huffed and turned her attention to her phone. No one came in, and that Parker guy stayed for over two hours on his computer. He bought a bagel, too, making her theory of him having-the-exact-amount-and-pretend-not-to dumb and stupid because, well, he didn't. Maybe she was just ma about the whole thing. She didn't want to work at a coffee shop, but she owed Felicia and she hated owing people more than the job.

After another hour the Parker guy stood up, picked his empty cup and dish and was actually polite enough to bring them to her. He didn't have to, actually, that was her job. But she wasn't going to complain.

"Well," he said as he took his computer,"I'm leaving now. Thanks, MJ." and he left.

Mary Jane looked down at her name tag and then back at where that Parker guy had been.

MJ. She liked the sound of it.

* * *

Omg. Well, guys, this seems to be the start of an actually planned fic. Gosh.  
Anyway, I have dark circles under my eyes. High school dark circles under my eyes. Seriously? And then I start writing fanfiction again, what the hell is wrong with me?

Fangirls, we never change.


	2. That Parker Guy

So, Harry never came back. Mary Jane— MJ, she actually liked it (something good had to come out of that Parker guy), had to attend about fifteen costumers on her own. It wasn't that bad, as it was summer vacations. She just hoped that other days would be a little busier, or she wouldn't get the income she expected and the whole thing would be pointless. She had to look for the keys all around to store to close it, taking her about an hour to find the spare ones hidden under a Felicia's desk in her office.

The next day when she got there, Harry had already opened, which was relieving for her. When she entered, she noticed the guy from the day before was there already, too.

"Hey." She said as she entered.

"Hey Mary." Harry said.

Parker smiled but didn't greet her. It wasn't until she noticed the look on his face that she became aware of the current situation and the tension in the air; They were arguing over something. She looked down as she went inside to meet her boss and leave her things, purposely avoiding their gazes.

"Mary Jane." She heard her boss say.

MJ looked up and was expecting Felicia to be up to something un-boss-likely but found she had a serious look on her face.

"Yeah?"

"I want you to go down town to pick up a few things." She said.

"Me? But yesterday-"

"Yesterday Harry did it, and only proved to me once more that if you want something done you must sent a woman to do it."

MJ frowned. She was 300% sure that the phrase was supposed to be different. But Felicia was always the kind to write her own rules, so let it be then.

"Okay."

Felicia handed her a list.

"You need to learn this sooner or later, so I figured sooner would be better."

MJ nodded.

"Make sure they give you _my _package and not someone else's like they did with Harry. I swear, I'm going to _sue _them if they ever-"

Felicia cut herself off and shook her head, it seemed as she had too much on her mind and she felt she couldn't make out a rational thought. MJ took that as her cue to leave. She decided to use a side-door to avoid the awkwardness and when she got to the street she realized she didn't have a car.

"MJ," She spun around to find Parker right behind her, "do you need a ride?"

She rolled her eyes. "If this is your way to try to hit on me, then no, I don't."

He chuckled.

"No, that wasn't what I meant."

She smirked. "Oh, so you're saying I'm not attractive?"

"Come on MJ that's not what I said."

"So what, do you have a girl or something, un-named-costumer?"

He chuckled, as if just realizing he had yet to introduce himself.

"I'm Peter and yes, I actually do."

She eyed him for a moment before speaking up,"Okay then, I might accept your offer."

Peter laughed and took out his car keys. She followed him to his car and well, it was a complete _junk. _And that was a lot coming from MJ, who practically lived from junk. Well, things had gotten better for her that year, but it was all because of her hard work and efforts.

"It's not exactly the best car ever, but well, it works. I can almost assure you it's safe to used it." He joked.

MJ chuckled as she got in the car. She decided didn't dislike the guy, as she had thought the day before, when he seemed immensely annoying. There just was something off about him that for some reason had made her feel the need to avoid. She couldn't understand how now, he seemed friendly enough.

"It's okay, for a junk car." She said.

Peter chuckled.

"Yeah well, I just bought it because of my job."

"What do you do?" She asked, suddenly curious.

"I'm a freelance photographer for The Bugle."

"Really? That's- it's-"

Peter cut her off,"I know, I know. The pay is awfull, not even worth calling it a job, but I enjoy it. That's why I do it."

She was amazed by the guy's sincerity and sensibility. She didn't figure someone like him would understand what it was to be so pasionate about something.

"I get it. I mean, it's the same with me."

Peter arched and eyebrow at her, eyes still on the road.

"You enjoy working at a coffee shop?"

She bursted in the loudest, un-feminine-est laugh ever and Peter laughed at it.

"No. God, no no, I didn't mean that." She said,"I'm an actress. I love to sing and dance too, but unless you're Idina Menzel or Samantha Barks, the pay isn't much."

Peter turned to look at her, as though he was surprised, since they were stuck in the traffic.

"Idina Menzel?"

She laughed.

"Broadway actress from Wicked. Samantha is from Les Miserables."

Peter hummed,"I'm going to pretend I know what you're talking about."

She rolled her eyes.

"So why are you working at the shop then?"

She sighed, a smile makings its way on her face. "I, gosh, I lost a bet against a friend, who is now my boss."

Peter let out a loud, heartedly laugh.

"That makes sense."

Before she could even ask him what he meant by that, the red light turned green and he asked her for a specific address.  
She took out the note Felicia had given her and read it out loud. Surprisingly, in less than twenty minutes they were already there.

Peter parked outside of the building and MJ got out of the car.

"Thank you for driving me all the way here. You probably-"

He waved her off.

"I work a block from her, it was on my way."

They were quiet for a moment and MJ remember a question she'd been meaning to ask.

"Well, better get going. My boss will kill me if I'm late."

She nodded her head. Maybe she'd ask him some other time. They had just met each other and she felt like she would be prying into something private, but still wondered what he and Harry could be arguing about.

"Later, Parker." She said as she waved and went into the building.

* * *

I meant this to be a little longer, but damn. School's been a firetrucking pain lately and I barely got sleep this week. I'm just catching up on it though, as today was my very last test. And hey, it's an early update! Yay!

On the bright side, my grades are steady and that's more than I could ask for, as I'm currently too tired to try to get higher ones. I swear, once I'm done with the musical I'm in my grades will be perfect. And I'll sleep a lot more.

Oh oh! AND I'll dye my hair RED. Any tips?


	3. Late Night Life

MJ walked out of the building with a box in her hands. She wondered to herself why in the world Felicia would do all this for a _single_ box. She shook her head, knowing she'd never be able to understand what went through her friend's mind. She walked a few blocks, glancing to the sides every now and then. It was getting late and she wasn't in one of the safest parts of the city. She had always proven to be a very independent person, being able to hand difficult situations by herself, but thugs? That's a whole different thing. She _did_ plan on taking self defence classes sometime...

She felt something cold in the back of her head and freezed.

"Don't move," She heard a male voice say.

She stayed glued to her place, too panicked to think of doing anything else.

"Give me everything you've got." He said.

She didn't move.

"Now!" He barked, putting the gun closer to her head.

She scrambled to put the box on the ground and took out three dollars and a few cents from her pockets. She let the money on top of the box and waited for the man to do or say something.

"Are you kidding me? Do you actually expect me to believe that you only have with three freaking dollars and a box full of—?" Before the man could continue or MJ could argue that she didn't have anything else and red and blue figure swooped in. She heard punches and then felt strong arms wrap around her middle and when she opened her eyes she saw they were in the air. She gaped and turned to the figure carrying her. She hadn't even realized she closed her eyes.

"You shouldn't walk around at this time. It's too dangerous." Spider-Man told her,"Where to?"

She blinked a few times, trying to process the fact that _Spider-Man_ was talking to her, he was _carrying _her and offering to _take her home._

_Two gentleman in one day, a whole new record.  
_

"Uh 410 Chelsea street...right off 8th avenue." She answered.

He didn't say anything else for the rest of the way. It was weird, because MJ had been told numerous times that Spider-Man was a very talkative person, and was even know for that. She shrugged it off, as she knew that he had a personal life apart from being Spider-Man and that he had to deal with that too. He dropped her in front of her apartment.

"Thank you for saving me, and," She chuckled," thank you for the lift. No pun intended."

He chuckled and she smiled. She didn't really know why it made her so happy.

"No problemo kid. Just be more careful the next time, okay?"

She nodded her head and watched as Spider-Man jokingly saluted and swinged away. She sighed, this was probably one of the best things that had happened to her in a long time. She smiled to herself as she walked up the stairs and opened the door to her apartment. She closed the door behind her and sighed. The day hadn't been one of her best, but the simple fact that she had been saved, that someone cared enough to make an effort for her, it was fresh and relieving. She had been lonely for long, even when she was surrounded by people and was the center of attention, until she met Felicia. It didn't seem like it, but they had grown fond of each other ever since they met that day, stuck in a small shop because of the rain. Now she knew that Felicia hated water, something about ruining her hair. MJ thought it was ridiculous, but many other girls thought the same so she kept her mouth shut. Then there was Richard, her boyfriend, who she had been dating for almost half a year. Well, about five months. He made her feel special, feel wanted.

She took a moment to think of her life, and even though she wasn't known in the theatre business as much as she'd like (or at all), she felt she was on the right track. For once, she felt she was doing things correctly. She put the box on her table and turned on her cellphone, just in time for it to start ringing.

"Richard." She said and felt a smile grow on her face. Only he could make her so happy all of a sudden, so out of the blue.

She put her phone to her ear,"Hello?"

_"Hey Mary Jane." _She heard him say tiredly. He had never been good staying up.

"Hey Richard." She replied happily.

_"Why didn't you answer your phone? I was worried."_

"Oh I'm sorry, I had to turn it off," She explained," I was in working and I kept receiving messages from the phone company. It was annoying."

She heard him laugh,_"Oh Mary Jane. I'm tired, so I'll just go to sleep now. Talk to you tomorrow?"_

MJ glanced at the clock and gaped. It was 9:00 pm.

"Sure. I'll call you."

_"Love you."_

"Me too." She said, and a moment later the line went dead.

She picked up her stuff and went to her room. She would practice her acting, singing and/or dancing every night when she got home. She didn't want to get rusty while she wasn't actively auditioning. She wondered how her boyfriend could feel tired by this time of the day and she would stay up for three more hours or so. He was so un-new-yorker. Unlike her, he wasn't a new yorker.

* * *

Okay. The phone-company-thing is a real life based experience. IT'S SO FORKING ANNOYING.

Anyways, Hope you like this chapter. It's a little different from the others.  
I was watching The Help today. Gosh I love that movie. It's different from what Emma normally does.  
Oh oh, and today was raining hard, so my parents refused to take me to school. Lucky me? Not really.

Quote of the day: "Am I gonna believe all them bad things them fools say about me today?"

P.S. YES MJ's address is Peter's address in Amazing Spider-man Annual No. 13.


	4. Hardworking Employees

I'm dedicating this story to 25BAM50. Seriously. Marry me. You were my first and only supporter for three weeks. Thank you :)

* * *

MJ blew her hair out of her face, bored. This was just her third day, but it was more than enough for her to notice that invariable amount of costumers. It was eleven already and they had only have five costumers. _Five._

If the entire New York population wanted her to starve to death, well, they were doing _just fine._ She glanced at her right to Harry, who seemed just as bored, and she started to wonder why he even started working there on the first place.

"What brought you here?" She just didn't mean to be so blunt and straightforward about it.

He blinked a few times," You mean, like, in a biological-scientific kind of way or—"

She laughed,"No, no. Work, why do you work here?"

"Oh," He laughed nervously," it's— it's a, well, actually I—"

"Wow, hey there. You don't have to tell me, it's okay, we all have corpses hidden in our closet." She told him.

There was an acknowledging silenced moment until Harry spoke up, his voice so serious and low it made MJ believe he might actually _have _a dead corpse in his closet.

"I wanted to run away," He started," My dad and I never really got along well, but still he seemed to have my life planned out for me. I couldn't just sit and watch, you know?"

She nodded her head, because he expected her to, because he was opening up to her, not because she understood.

"So, when I was eighteen I ran away. Pete was there for me the whole time. And even when he doesn't have much money of his own, he offered me a home, he offered me a _family_."

"But you were arguing. The other day." But words seemed to come out of her mouth as if she was someone else. An insensible and nosey, someone else. He didn't seem to mind telling her, though.

"Yeah, we were." He stared into space and held his gaze there for a while. MJ knew they had to end the conversation sometime soon because either way it would head into dangerous waters. Their argument, or her reason. She knew it would only be fair for her to answer, but she just prefered not to.

"So, he knew Felicia and told you about the job?" She said, trying to skip any awkwardness and/or tension.

He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood himself,"Yeah, well, that came much later. After he helped me find a place to stay that wasn't his aunt's couch, a few other jobs and a college I could afford by myself. Then, this job came."

She hummed. So maybe it wasn't his entire fault he was so bad at his job, he just needed practice. As much as MJ hated it, she was going to be the one to teach him.

"Okay then," She said, a little too energized, but obviously tired of the atmosphere,"Time to get something to do here."

He arched an eyebrow,"Huh?"

She took a sponge and a broom and shoved them into his chest.

"Let's make this place spark."

* * *

MJ was resting sitting down on a chair in the employee's room. It was small and only had four chairs and a small table. Harry was sitting on the chair beside her, both of them trying to catch their breath while watching t.v., which also happened to be small. They had cleaned this place to it's core. They had done everything possible and MJ made sure Harry knew how to do all of it. Since Felicia wasn't there, MJ played her own music through the shop's speakers, that were only meant for quiet, cherry music. If they were going to clean, they needed motivation. And it wasn't like people were going in there any time soon. _Besides,_ MJ's taste in music was plain awesome.

After cleaning, they decided to rest at the employee's room, using up their lunch time. Harry turned on the t.v. and took a seat at the chair beside MJ's.

"So, think Felicia would pay extra for all the hard work?" Harry asked her, ignoring the t.v. show playing in the background.

MJ laughed,"No, we're _supposed _to work this hard, _always._" She told him.

His eyes widened."_Always?_"

"Yupe."

"Oh _man._"

_"Hey guys? Anybody in here?" _Peter's voice boomed in.

MJ immediately stood up, know better than to let Harry be the one to attend him.

"Hey tiger." She greeted him.

"Hey MJ. Slow day, huh?"

"Yeah. Never thought it'd be so boring."

He hummed and then went silent. They just stared at each other, like expecting the other to do something.

"Uh, _sir, may I take your order?_" She tried.

He chuckled.

"The usual." He said, handing her the money.

She nodded and went to prepare him what she now knew was his everyday coffee. She started humming and was surprised when Peter joined her. She turned to face him, not believing her ears.

"I thought you said you didn't know _Les Mis._" She told him.

"I didn't."

Her eyes widened. He shrugged.

"You made it sound like it was the best thing ever, so I might have listened to a few songs." He explained.

She grinned, she almost felt like jumping out of joy.

"It's not half bad. Specially that Jean ValJean, uh, Alfie Boe."

MJ placed the coffee on the counter, "I _know,_ right? He's awesome, the best Jean ValJean so far. Surprisingly, Nick did very well, specially in acting (I liked his interpretation better than Michael Ball's). You should totally compare cast from the 10th and the 25th."

Peter chuckled."I'd have to watch the musical for that—"

"Don't worry. I have it. Both" She told him.

Peter saw the spark in MJ's eyes, which were looking at him expectantly. How could he tell her no?

"Alright. Let's watch it." He said with a sigh.

MJ squealed. Oh boy.

* * *

Well guys, I'm proud of myself. I've been having every single chapter so far written at least one day before updating it. On the other hand, I had a sucky day and it was entirely my fault. I broke my iPod, and had a score of 64 on my chemistry test, which is my favorite subject. I even want to be a biochemist/genetist or something like that. The good thing is a classmate had to do the test again because the teacher didn't believe him getting a 100, that maybe he cheated (which he did, just a little) and I asked her to do the same with me. I scored a firetrucking hundred. So in the end it was a pretty good day (except for my baby, my iPod who I creatively named Pod).

Guest:

Hey that's actually a great idea. I'm totally trying that out, although I'm not all that familiar with Cletus. Thank you for your review. You and 25BAM50 are getting a medal. A golden one. An electronic, golden medal.


	5. Son Of A Gun

Mary Jane looked at the clock excitedly and checked everything was in order. She had done all of her chores for the day at the shop, and Harry would cover for her the hour she would be gone. Everything was in place. The clock ticked, signaling it had been fifteen minutes now from the time Peter was coming to pick her up. She started to wonder if he was really coming after all, but she reminded herself that Harry had said that he was very unpunctual for some reason. Still, that didn't stop her from wondering.

"Hey MJ!" What did stop her from wondering was seeing Peter walk right in through the door,"Sorry I'm late, but my boss—" She waved it off.

"It's fine, I used the time to finish my chores here. And I was warned about your tardiness Mr. Parker." She joked.

Peter laughed, but something seemed odd about it. He surely knew that it was most probable that it had been Harry who told her. But then again, it could be something entirely else.

She took her uniform accessories off and put them under the counter. She and Peter walked out and into his car. She couldn't help but being excited. None of her friends liked to do this with her, or at least try like Peter. It was surprising for her how nice he was with her even though they barely knew each other.

"So, this musical-theatre thing, you really love it, don't you?" He asked, probably trying to make small talk.

MJ grinned. "Yeah, it's my passion. Seriously though, you'll thank me after this. Les Mis is one of the _best._" She said.

Peter smiled. "I really hope so. I read online it lasts over two hours!"

MJ laughed. "You bet."

After that it was only a few moments of silence. The silent sound of cars, traffic jam and people screaming was a comfortable one for them, it seemed. But well, after living in such a busy city for so long, all that sound seemed to them like the sound of their breathing; sometimes, they don't even notice it's there, and when they do, it's relaxing and comforting.

"So, what about this girl of yours, what's her name?"

She noticed how his face went from a happy one to a goofy, teenage-love-like one. His smile grew even wider, but it was almost as if he didn't even notice. She wondered for a moment if that's how someone in love looked like.

"Her name's Gwen. She's— she's so—"

MJ giggled.

"Yeah yeah, I get it. She lights up your life. She's the sun of your days and the moon of your nights." She said. She didn't just save him from and awkward heartedly moment, but she also gave him good phrases to tell her. Damn, she was good.

"She is." He said as a matter of fact.

"And why haven't I seen her? You go everyday to the shop, but she's never with you." She asked.

And suddenly, his smile flattened. His face went from joyfully to a neutral one. He was silent for a moment, a moment long enough for MJ to wonder if he had even heard her. But the look on his face, his sudden change of emotions said otherwise, she was sure of it. Because of that, it caught her a little off guard when he answered

"It's complicated." He said only at first. MJ didn't want to pride since it was probably none of her business. Maybe after they became closer friends she'd know. Maybe he wouldn't even have to tell her, she'd notice. It was a weird mix of emotions; the ones tangible in the air, Peter's, and the ones inside her, the awkwardness, sheepishness and at last but not least, the excitement of a new friend. The last one was one she hadn't felt in a long time, she had never felt so eager to meet someone, to know more about them. It usually just happened, or it didn't.

"Oh." She said unconsciously. She didn't really mean anything by it.

"It's not— it's—"

"It's okay Peter." She interrupted him. She knew he probably wasn't going to tell her anyway, so why make him uncomfortable? "You don't have to tell me. Geez, it was just a question."

Peter chuckled awkwardly. Damn, everything about him screamed awkward.

"Sorry. It's just still a touchy subject." He said, smiling.

After a moment MJ turned the volume on the radio up. _Son Of A Gun_ by The Vaselines was on, and even though it wasn't exactly her genre she knew it was Peter's. Besides, that didn't mean she didn't like it.

Peter started singing the song in low volume and MJ smirked. When the chorus came, she sang along.

_"The sun shines in the bedroom when you play," _ Peter's smile grew wider when he heard her sing, and he quickly glanced at her before turning back to the road. He sang louder, even though he thought he wasn't a good singer, but MJ gave him this sort of confidence, so he just though: "What the hell."

_"And the raining always starts when you go away."_

They both felt the tension drift away at the rhythm of the music and they kept singing, Peter all of the song and MJ the chorus. At some point, they both stopped singing and started laughing.

"I never thought you'd like this music." He told her.

"Well, as you may already know, I _am _full of surprises." She answered, a smirk on her face."But I only know the chorus, though."

Peter laughed loudly. "Well, you got almost half of the song."

She laughed, too. "Yeah, yeah. You're right."

For the rest of their way they listened to the radio and played guessing the song that came on next. Neither of them thought they would have all that fun. And this was just the start.

* * *

Hey guys. I'm sorry, I wanted to post this earlier today, but you see, errr...cough, I hadn't finished it cough. (I also had planned this to be a lot longer, sorry)

Anyways, still TODAY which matters. To me. I swear, I'm so tired I might be just dreaming to write and update this. I'm pinching my shoulder right now.

By the way guys, I had like, the best weekend EVER. I helped painting a mural on saturday but most importantly I went to watch a Tim Burton musical. You see, I'm part of a musical and my choreographer is the director of this Tim Burton musical. So all of our cre (most of us, anyway) went to watch their show to support them, but also, give ourself some idea of what we'll be going through in exactly a month. A month guys. A MONTH.

I'm so excited. I mean nervous. I mean, excited. Yeah. Excited.

Guest:

Okay, first of all, I order you to make yourself an account. You're so nice! Like, I'd love to PM you and so. Okay now, I love rambling. I ramble a lot myself, and I love it. Idk why. Thank you! And that's a pretty high score!


	6. Making Friends

Spoilers for Les Mis. Just in case you haven't seen/read it. You should. Like, right now. (_No, _not the movie).

BTW rating will go up in future chapters. Just letting you guys know.

* * *

MJ was grinning, oh how_ much _she loved music.

"It's here to the right." She said.

Peter did as told and turned. He parked his car in the only place available in the whole street and turned the engine off.

"Well," MJ started," we're here." She got out of the car and walked towards the entrance of the apartment. She looked back to make sure Peter was following her and then pushed to button for the elevator. Once in, she pushed the button to the sixth floor and the doors closed. They waited.

"I think it's called Moonlight Sonata." He said.

It took MJ a moment to understand what he was talking about.

"Oh. Really? I wouldn't have taken you for a classy kind." She said.

Peter smirked. "Classy kind?"

She shoved him a little. "You know what I mean."

He chuckled. "I'm not. My girlfriend is, though. And I like all kind of music. I'm not just into rock indie or so." He explained.

MJ hummed and nodded her head.

"So, Moonlight Sonata is it?" She asked, trying to listen to the low elevator music.

"Yep. Although I think it could be a different version. This one's almost...cheery." He said.

MJ hummed again.

"Who's the author?" She asked.

"Beethoven."

And then both the music and their conversation was interrupted by the soft ding, alerting them that they had arrived their floor. The doors opened and both of them walked out.

"I'll look it up. I kinda liked it."

Peter nodded in agreement. He also thought of how Gwen would probably be laughing at their ignorance on classical music. MJ unlocked the door and welcomed Peter in.

"It's small, but hey, it's something."

Peter didn't say anything as he looked around, noticing the untidiness of the place. Dirty, empty dishes were on the table and a pair of jeans on the couch. MJ quickly pushed the last ones behind the couch. She smiled sheepishly.

"Not bad for a _junk._" He finally told her.

She laughed and sat on the couch, taking her computer and turning it on. Peter followed her example and sat beside her. She logged in and inserted the movie dvd on the computer as Peter prepared himself for what was to come.

"Well, I can almost assure you it's safe to walk on this floors." She told him, and he laughed in return.

"I mean it. Be careful." She told him once laughter had died down.

He looked at her, trying to figure out if she actually meant what she was saying. She burst out laughing.

"I'm joking! Man, kids this days take everything too seriously." She said.

Peter laughed loudly, again.

MJ went back to her computer, trying to play the _tenth anniversary Les Miserables musical, _a smug grin on her face.

* * *

Harry stood rigid as Felicia walked by and went to her office. He heard the door close and visibly relaxed. He didn't know if he'd be able to deal with covering for Mary Jane for long. He checked his watch, he only needed to wait for another twenty minutes and then he'd leave, sign out for him and Mary Jane and get the hell out of there. He didn't want to deal with a pissed Felicia, much less a _mad _Felicia.

He heard some noises come from her office and tensed up once more. He looked at his watch.

Why in the world did he even agree to do this?

Because Mary Jane had been nothing but nice. Without her, he would be a useless employee still. She wasn't like other people that didn't know about him and didn't even care enough.

He smiled as he realized it; she was a friend.

* * *

"Nick is definitely a better Marius." Peter said as the _twentieth anniversary Les Miserables musical_ ended.

"I _know._" MJ squealed.

"But I didn't like Cosette all that much. I mean, you can't just fall in love with someone you just _met._" He said.

"Right." MJ answered.

"Eponine is much more mature."

"Yeah."

"Why did she have to die?"

"I don't know!"

They sat there, thinking about everything they'd seen the last four/five hours. Maybe they even moped a little. Just maybe.

"I guess I do have to thank you." He said after a while.

"Well _duh_." She answered sarcastically.

He nudged her shoulder. His phone rang and he excused himself. But even as he went to the other side of the room she could hear the conversation.

"Hey Gwen." He said, a goofy smile on his face.

She heard a feminine, muffled voice on the other end.

"Yeah, I'm on my way there, why?" He answered.

His smile suddenly fell, just a tiny bit.

"Okay. Yeah, just be safe, okay? Bye." He hung up and put his phone in his pocket.

He turned to MJ, who looked back at him expectantly.

"Um, I need to go. I had fun, we should do this again sometime." He said as he picked up his coat.

MJ stood up and walked beside him to the door.

"Oh, sure. That'd be great." She said.

Peter flashed her a smile and left.

* * *

I _know _it's not much more than before. But that's just how it is. Deal with it. Lol, jk.

(I'm sorry, I'm going through Hell Week (aka Tech Week), my show being in less than a month. omg)

Guest: Well, you really _should _then. As a fellow fanfiction author, I command you to write. Write!  
Nah, just kidding. Although you _could_ use your account to, I don't know, review? Hahaha. Anyway, I hope you do find sometime to write. It takes away time (yes), but it really helps. This fic is like, the _light_ of my Wednesdays. It's like the Gwen to my Peter (lol).


	7. Sweet Obliviousness

Oh my God guys. Chapter seven already! Yay!

* * *

MJ served coffee to a guy who was trying, too, to hit on her. Ever since she started working at the shop, male costumers would flirt with. And MJ being MJ, she would playfully flirt back sometimes. But it was nice to have friends who weren't interested in her in any other way than friendship; like Harry and Peter.

And obviously Felicia, but she was a girl so, yeah.

The three of them had grown really fond of the petit redhead, and she had of them. There would hardly be a day that she'd go without seeing any of them. Except for maybe monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday and oh, friday. Ever since Peter had gone to her place to watch _Les Mis _the friday before she hadn't seen him. She tried not to think much of it. She did her work, she talked with Harry and would even go to eat somewhere with Felicia when closing the shop. But there was no sign of Peter.

Saturday

Richard and MJ had gone to have dinner at a restaurant (not fancy, but a little better than the ones they'd usually go to) to celebrate his new job. _Dream _job, that is. It was an enchanting night, really. Getting to spend time with her boyfriend, alone, with such god news, it was easy to be oblivious to everything going on. She didn't notice. Yet.

Sunday

As she had used up her free day to celebrate with Richard, she had been early in the morning at the shop, surprised to actually be the first one there. She shrugged it off and opened. She put everything in order and sat at her spot behind the counter. A few minutes later Felicia came in and congratulated her for her hard work, and then said something about it _not _meaning she'd get any extra pay. Harry arrived about and hour later.

Monday

She sleepily arrived five minutes late to the shop, finding Harry and Felicia already there. Apparently, they didn't really open early on weekends, because, well, they're _weekends. _MJ thought it shouldn't surprise her much, as none other than _Felicia _was the boss. Yes, she had this assistance people in charge of hiring people and making sure the place didn't burn down, but that's just about it.

She chatted with Harry a little, and couldn't help but to notice that he was acting weird, even for him. He'd space out every now and then, and would sometimes jump when she approached him.

MJ went with Felicia a little while later, trying to chat with her during her break, but when she knocked and opened the door, she, too, jumped.

Tuesday

MJ got a call from an old theatre friend who apparently was auditioning for a role in a small play somewhere near her. MJ immediately affered her help to go through her lines for the audition. If she wasn't auditioning herslef, at least she'd help a friend to do it. They met about 10:00 am in a coffee shop (funny right?) called _The Old Whale_ and bought a drink each. MJ made note of how weird, animal names seemed to be getting more a more popular. They talked about the old times and how much they missed the rehearsals together. They had been working as extras in a _Titanic _play. It wasn't very famous, but it was really good and had many talented people working there. _  
_

They went over the part of the script a few times, paid and each went their way. MJ arrived at the shop, and found no difference from the awkwardness of the day before.

Wednesday

She knew they were keeping something from her. There was no way they both could be acting so weird around her. But then again, they could be just being weird in general, not _because _of her. Before she could even think of asking any of them about it, Harry left. He said he needed to attend some business and Felicia ket him go easily. It was as if he was saying something with his mouth, but something different with his eyes. When she went to Felicia, she didn't get a chance to ask, as she told her she was going to be out for the next day and needed to make sure everything was in place. MJ couldn't remember why she'd gone to her office in the first place, as her former thoughts were replaced with worry for her friend, who seemed out of it. She went back to work.

Thursday

Harry got there before she did, but that wasn't anything weird. It wasn't until then that she noticed the absence of Peter the whole week. _That_ was unusual. She talked with Harry during their free time, which wasn't much. They had many, many clients, more than they usually did. After a few hours, when talking with one of the guys that flirted with her, she was told it was because a near shop was assaulted and all it's clients decided to give this weird-named shop a try. It was success.

Friday

MJ was serving coffee to a guy who was trying, too, to hit on her, (and Harry home sick) when he came through the door. The guy left when he realised she wasn't going to go out with him and Peter walked to the counter. She gave him a bright smile and he answered with a tired, yet happy one.

* * *

Well, well, well. There's many things going on in MJ's life and she doesn't even know. Got any ideas? I sure have some.

Man, I'm so tired right now, I could sleep for the next day and just wake up for rehearsal at 7:00. And I still need to finish my homework. Darn it. Wish me luck? (Do you guys know about the whole Ayotzinapa thing? We're wearing black tomorrow at school and haveing a few speaches in their honor)

(Omg. My show is in 16 days!)

Guest:  
Thank you! :)


	8. Past Christmases

Guys, Christmmas special! It's about past Christmas, with younger characters, separated lives. You know, before the Black Fat Cat even existed.

Don't expect this to be the typical Christmas story with a happy ending, in which a day seems to last long enough for twenty chapter to be written about it. Nope. It _does _answer many questions you may or may not have, and it _does _have cute, fluffy moments with a few characters.

Enjoy:)

* * *

Snow, candy canes, pines, carols, and the colors green, red and white; this are the things that make up Christmas, right? Well that, the gifts, the food and the over joyful moments with friends and family.

But Christmas isn't the same every year, and definitely not the same to everyone. If we look back to the Christmas of years before, maybe we could understand some better, or at least, see them in a different way.

.

.

.

_Hark how the bells,_  
_sweet silver bells,_  
_all seem to say,_  
_"throw cares away"_

_._

_._

_._

Peter walked down the streets of New York carrying a box of donnuts and hot coffee. He made his way with a quick pace to his house, where aunt May waited for him. Not because he _had _to hurry, but because he _wanted _to. It was no other than Christmas, the time in which everyone was filled with joy and excitement, and Peter Parker was no different at that.

He knocked on the door and it immediately opened.

"Peter! What took you so long? Come on in" Aunt May ushered him inside.

"I came here as fast as I could! But the line was huge!"He answered as he shook the snow off his coat and hanged it with the others. Aunt May closed the door behind him and they went into the living room, where a pile of christmas movies and food sat on the coffee table. He sat on the couch and reached for his ringing cellphone.

"Yeah?" He said as he answered and watched how his aunt went from the living room to the kitchen.

_"I'm on my way Pete, don't start without me!"_ said Harry Osborn on the other side of the line.

Someone knocked on the door and Peter stood up to answer it.

"Okay, but hurry up man," He said as he opened the door, reveleaning Felicia outside," even Felicia is already here."

Felicia made her way in and shot Peter a look.

"What do you mean _even Felicia,_ Huh? I mean, _you _are the one who's always late for everything." She told him.

_"Yeah yeah, I'll hurry. Be there in ten." _And then Harry hung up.

Peter closed his phone and looked up at Felicia, who had her arms crossed over her chest.

"I'm not one to talk, but you're not exactly the most punctual person I know." He told her.

She raised her eyebrows,"If you'd stop getting in my way, I wouldn't be late."She whispered.

Peter glanced at the kitchen, where aunt May was preparing something.

"Yeah, but you finally stopped, didn't you?" He said, trying to make it more of a statement, but ended being the question he'd been meaning to ask for a while now.

Felicia avoided looking directly at Peter's eyes,"Yeah, I did." She said.

Aunt May walked out of the kitchen with a plate full of cookies.

"Here, have some cookies." She said with a smile.

They both smiled and took a cookie, and then the three of them went to the living room.

.

.

.

_Christmas is here  
__Bringing good cheer  
__To young and old  
__Meek and the bold_

_._

.

.

Gwen Stacy pushed the door of the bakery open with her shoulder and smiled to a guy who held it her.

"Thank you." She told him, and then headed to her appartment, three docens of muffins in guy grinned and nodded, walking into the building. After walking a few blocks, she reached her destined building. She greeted the doorman and took the elevator. She took out her keys and opened the door, and then she was greeted with smiles from her family.

"Hey Gwen!" Her brothers said, as they all ran and took the boxes from her.

"Kids, remember to save some for dinner!" Her mother said in an attempt of keeping them from eating all of them.

"Good to know they're happy to see me." Gwen said and went into the kitchen.

The sound of cheers and screams coming from Gwen's brothers on the other sidde of the room made he mother roll her eyes.  
She turned back to her daughter and noticed she was putting three muffins in a basket.

"Gwen, what are you doing?" She asked her.

Gwen turned to her mom while still arranging the muffins in the basket,"I'm taking these to the girl next door, Kitty." She answered.

Her mother raised an eyebrow at her.

"Oh, really? I thought you disliked her. You know, since she had this 'weird' crush on Peter."

Gwen snapped her head back to her mother.

"I don't _dislike _her. I just wasn't all that happy about a girl having pictures of my boyfriend on her wall and her giving me mean looks whenever he's around. Besides, it's just a few muffins, _and _it's Christmas." She reasoned.

Her mother nodded.

"Why did you change your mind? You know, about this girl."

Gwen thought for a moment her words.

"It's just-" She started,"Her brother died a few months ago, and this is their first Christmas without him. It must be hard, and I thought a little kindness wouldn't kill. I mean, it's not like we'll just become bff's _because _of that..."

Her mother smiled, walked to her and kissed her forehead, "You're a great person Gwen, you know?"

Gwen smiled.

"Thanks mom." She said and then headed out.

"Don't take too long, your dad will be here any time soon."

.

.

.

_Ding, dong, ding, dong_  
_That is their song_  
_With joyful ring_  
_All caroling_

_._

_._

_._

"Peter! Peter I'm here!" Harry screamed as he ran towards the door of his house and pounded on the door. The door flung open and Peter hurried him in.

"What took you so long?" Peter asked him.

"I'm sorry. My dad 'wanted' to have a family dinner."

Peter arched an eyebrow.

"How long did it last this time?" He asked.

Harry took out his phone and showed him a chronometer.

"Ten minutes." He turned to Felicia and elaborated,"He received a call from the office and left."

"Oh." She nodded.

Harry took off his coat, gloves and scarf and hanged it along Felicia's and Peter's. Then they all went to the living room, where aunt May waited.

"Harry!" She greeted him with a hig and a kiss,"Want some cookies?"

He took a cookie and sat down.

"Thank you, aunt May." He said.

Peter picked the remote and was about to play the first movie when his phone ringed.

"Oh come on!" Both Harry and Felicia complained.

"Sorry, I won't take long." He said as he stood up and left.

Once he as gone aunt May whispered;"It must be Gwen."

_._

_._

_._

_One seems to hear  
Words of good cheer_  
_From ev'rywhere  
Filling the air_

_._

_._

_._

Gwen knocked on Kitty's door and took a deep breath. She could do this. She would do this. The door flung open and Kitty stared at her.

"What?" She almost spat.

Gwen stammered,"Uh, I,I just-I wanted to-" She sighed,"I thought you and your family would like some muffins? We had a few extras and-" She paused when shenoticed she wasn't getting anything but the same old, almost mean, look from Kitty.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened, with your brother, and I thought that maybe a little kindness would help." She said and extened her hands, putting the basket closer to Kitty. Kitty blinked and looked at the basket.

"Thanks." She said as she took them.

Kitty was turning to leave but stopped dead in her tracks, looked at Gwen and sighed. She turned back and hugged her, and then she whispered a soft: "Thank you." That somehow seemed to be more meaningful than the one she'd said before. Gwen hugged her back and waited until she pulled back, unsure of what to do. Kitty pulled back and smiled, sniffing.

"And I'm sorry about everything- with Peter. I just- he's a good friend to me, and a great guy. But you already know that. Just, take care of him, as I know he'll take care of you."

Gwen blinked and smiled.

"Thanks." She said.

"And maybe we could be friends? Start over or something." Kitty told her.

Gwen nodded and extended her hand for her to shake it.

"I'm Gwen Stacy, you must be the new neighbor."

Kitty took her hand and shook it.

"Yeah, I'm Kitty, nice to meet you."

Gwen smiled. "If you ever need anything, I'm right here next door, okay?"

Kitty nodded and closed the door. Gwen went back home and pulled her phone out. She dialed the phone number she'd grown used to typing now- she knew it by heart. After a few rigs, he picked up.

_._

_._

_._

_Oh how they pound,_  
_Raising the sound,_  
_O'er hill and dale,_  
_Telling their tale,_

_._

_._

_._

"Gwen." He said as he picked up.

_"Peter!" _She said with excitement.

"What's got you so happy?"He asked, curious.

_"I just talked to Kitty. I think we coulda ctually become friends."_

"Oh really?" He grinned.

_"Yup. I think I have her blessing."_

"So when are you proposing to me?" He joked.

_"Well if I tell it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?"_ She played along.

They chuckled.

_"Peter! Stop flirting and hurry up!"_ Both Harry and Felicia yelled from the living room.

Peter and Gwen chuckled.

_"I guess you have to go." _She said.

"Yup. Weird and ansious best friends, what can I do?"

_"Hey!" _They yelled.

Gwen laughed,_"Well, then. Merry Christmas Peter."_

He smiled,"Merry Christmas Gwen."

_"And I'll hang a mistletoe over my window for when you come."_ She told him.

He smirked.

.

.

.

_Gaily they ring_  
_While people sing_  
_Songs of good cheer_  
_Christmas is here_  
_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_  
_Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas_

_._

_._

_._

Mary Jane sighed before opening the door to house, preparing herself to whatever waited inside. She found her father half asleep on the couch, a beer bottle in hand. She took the bottle from him and straightened him a bit. Then she went to the kitchen and put a small chicken in the microwave. She was going to try, at least one last time, and if it didn't work she'd leave once and for all. But not tonight, not on Christmas. Even if she wanted to, so much, she couldn't leave just yet. She didn't have the guts. And if she did, where would she go? What would she do? She needed to at least finish highschool. Yet, she yearned the day she had a career and money enough to have a place of her own, and have a fresh start. Meet new people, make good, strong friendships. And why not? Even have a good boyfriend; not like the ones she had before, one that would care about her. She shook her head, reminding herself that it was the one night of the year (not even her birthday) that she could be happy and maybe even share a good moment with her only relative. Even when he'd let her down so many times, he was still her father.

She took the chicken out and sat at the table. She tried to wake up her father, but it was no use. Maybe it was for good. Maybe for htem to get along, one of them must be out. And her father was definitely out of it. She took a piece of the chicken and ate it.

_Someday, _she promised herself, _I'll have a life I enjoy. I'll be eager to be with the people around me. They'll care about me, and I'll care about them._

.

.

.

_On, on they send_  
_On without end_  
_Their joyful tone_  
_To every home_

* * *

In my defence, I started this _before _Christmas. You should've seen me, I was typing like a million words a second, seriously! (okay, maybe not, but you get my point)But my family can be very time consuming. Example: We got locked out of my house while having dinner outside. My cousin's baby was _inside_. And since I live in an apartment, we had to climb and break either the window _or _the protections. We made my eight year old nephew climb through the living room window to open the door. All of this, of course, the 24th. And so on, and on. Other reason I didn't put this up the 25th (at the very least) is that I didn't have my computer. I wrote this in my cousin's computer.

Wel, anyway, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did :) Merry post-Christmas everyone.


	9. Friends

Blah blah blah, life sucks (_big time)_ sometimes so just gotta deal with it, sorry the long wait, _read on_.

* * *

"So, Mary Jane is it?"

MJ smiled slightly at the midly handsome guy standing in front of her, who obviously thought he was a big deal, wearing a leather jacket and leaning down on the counter with a flirt-like look on his face.

"Yupe. What about you, tiger?"

The guy grinned. Oh man, how ironic was it that something so common as a nickname for MJ was enough to bust up a guy's ego. The sound of the door opening made MJ turn her head and smile ever so brightly.

"My name's-"

"Peter." She murmured.

The guy turned to Peter, who was walking straight towards them and then shook his head. The guy walked out of the store.

"Hey MJ." He said, smiling. She noticed he looked tired and pale, and had a few scratches here and there.

"Hey Peter! Where've you been?" She asked, smiling too.

He leaned onto the counter for support and sighed.

"Where haven't I? The city was chaos, with bank robberies and spiderman stopping them all. As the Bugle's photographer, it's my job to capture all of that, you know?"

MJ arched her eyebrows,"Oh, really?"

He nodded.

"That's so cool. I was saved by spiderman from being robbed about a week ago, you know?"

"Oh, really?"

And there was something weird about his smile, but MJ couldn't really tell.

"What?"

"Oh no, it's nothing. Nothing at all." He said, but kept on smiling. If MJ hadn't known any better, she would've thought it was a smirk.

"Anyway, you should take care of yourself, Pete. It looks more like you were the one stopping them and not _capturing _them." She told him.

Peter chuckled. "Yeah, I know. But if you want to take the best shots, you need to get closer, and, well, if you do it's very easy for you to get hurt. Nothing to worry about, though."

MJ eyed Peter closely.

"Yeah, whatever you say." She answered.

Peter chuckled slightly but then turned to look around.

"Uh, so, how're things going around here? Did you do anything interesting this week?" He asked, obviously trying to change subject.

MJ let it slip, though. Because she hadn't seen him in a while she even worried about him. Just a little.

"Ah, it's been good. I went to have dinner with my boyfriend to this nice place called _'The Sea Shell Spell', _it's really good, actually. We were celebrating the new position he got at the Mayors office." She said

"Wow. The mayor, huh. Sounds important." He said.

She smiled at the though of Richard,"Yeah, sort off."

"So this _Shell Spell_ place's good?" He asked.

"Yeah, really."

"I was thinking about taking Gwen there."

MJ's eyes sparkled as she took Peter by his shoulders.

"We should go there on a double date!" She exclaimed.

Peter chuckled.

"Yeah, sure. Ask your boyfriend—"

"Richard."

"—Richard make a space in his probably busy agenda. Since he's job's gotta be pretty demanding and time consuming."

MJ nodded. His job _was _pretty time consuming before.

"I'll tell him. You tell your girl to get a nice dress for it."

"Yeah, sure."

"Now that I think about it, why don't you ever bring her here?" She asked him.

Peter rubbed the back of his neck and looked down.

"It's..."

"Complicated?" She tried.

"Yeah."

They stood there in silence, until it was actually _annoying._

"So...?" Mary Jane said.

Peter arched an eyebrow at her.

"So what?" He asked.

"You're not telling me? Like, am I not trustworthy or something?"

Peter's eyes widened and he waved his hands in the air in an attempt to make emphasis in what he'd say.

"No, no, no. It's not like that MJ, it's just— I don't even know how to— _Agh_," He paused and took a breath, closing his eyes.

MJ shifted, unsure. Maybe she'd pushed him too much, but after the time he'd been gone she began to worry. And now that he was right there, in front of her, she still couldn't help him in any way because he wouldn't open up to her. It was frustrating. Peter's shoulders relaxed as he opened his mouth to continue.

"It's Harry." He finally said.

MJ's eyes widened. It made sense. It totally made sense. Their fight, Gwen, it made sense. Except, of course, one thing.

"Why?" She asked in a low voice, suddenly aware of how loud she tended to be.

"He— _liked _her. Us three, we were Friends, and both of us had a crushon her. It's just— I wouldn't have— I didn't—"

"You didn't know." She said for him.

He nodded.

"Gwen didn't seem to notice either, until it became uncomfortable."

Mary Jane nodded for him to continue.

"It's a long, _dumb_ story. But in the end, Harry and I stayed Friends. Gwen isn't too comfortable with Harry around, although that isn't why she doesn't come here exactly." He sighed," I don't want her here. I know he's my friend and I understand, but when he's close to her —I see him _suffer _and it really doesn't work out. That—that's why."

Mary Jane stood there, trying to digest wothout really looking like it. She felt suddenly so afraid, not really sure why, but she felt that Harry could some through that door any time then and just see it in her face; that she knew. She didn't want to think any differently of him tan she did that day earlier or the day before, or the week before, or just _before._

"But we could still go to the Shell Place, and you could meet her there." Peter finally said, breaking the silence MJ wasn't sure how long lasted.

She smiled slightly.

"Yeah."

* * *

Okay guys. I'm sorry it took so long, but believe it or not, my family is _still _here. School is consuming, theatre, getting a new job, etc. This is a lot shorter tan I wanted it to be, but it is very important. So, yeah. Love ya, take care, see you next week.


	10. New York, New York

Okaaaaaaaaaaaaaay guys! Hope you like this! It seems pretty insignificant, but it does have a purpose. I've been struggling a little lately. But hey! I got a _SOLO. _

I. GOT. A. SINGING. SOLO. WOOOOHOOOO! BOOYAKASHA!

Anyways, I was in a small car crash the other day, and my mom and grandma ended up a little hurt, plus my grandpa's epilepsy attacks the other day and teenage normal stress— yeah, not really good.

On the bright side— besides the solo thing, omg,— I've got my friends by my side. And my best friend, who lives in a nother city, came to visit. And she's coming over to my place tomorrow. And I'm excited. Yay.

Anyways, enjoy the chapter! (although it is a little short, sorry!)

* * *

MJ wasn't going to tell this to Peter but— she had met Gwen once before. It was brief, but she totally fitted his description; Tall (shorter than Peter, _taller _than MJ), very blonde, smart, pretty greenish eyes, cute tiny nose, pink lips, pinkish skin, soft freckles, bangs, probably wearing a black headband and a nice blazer (yes, and yes)— Peter was very descriptive. Besides, she'd told her her name was Gwen.

She seemed pretty chill and smart and responsible and the type of girl Peter would date.

Anyway, MJ was excited about geeting to "meet" her. Because MJ felt like finally things were starrting to flow nicely in her life, even if she only had a small couch, a table and a bed in her appartment, and she only had like three real friends, and she was working at a coffee shop instead of a broadway show, _and _she barely saw her boyfriend now. This was, by far, the brighter and best her life had ever been. So now, making a new friend seemed exciting. Mostly, because MJ had decided to be more careful with the friends she had, and Gwen totally seemed like the kind of person tha would be a good influence in her life.

Plus, getting to hang out with a girl that wasn't Felicia would be _refreshing_.

So even though they hadn't even set a date, MJ was choosing the clothes she'd wear. She stood in front of her full length mirror, deciding if her short, flowery pink dress was suited for the ocasion. It was possible. She went pick out another dress and put it on. It was an inidgo one, with a black belt. This one was slightly longer than the last one, yet still short. A little too formall maybe. Still possible though. She changed into another, a yellow one. This one was about the same lenght, but had a white ribbon. Too summer-y.

She'd either buy a new one, or use the blue one. Considering her low salary and the fact that she was saving money for several things, she decided the later one. The blue dress would have to do.

She went to hte living room/dining room/kitchen and turned on the tv. She served herself some cerela as she listened to the news.

_"Spider-Man! A menace! That's all he is! No, he's worst than that! He's destroying the city!_— _"_

MJ changed the cannel. She really didn't like that guy's attitude. And it wasn't because she was grateful for Spider-Man, no. She believed everyone had the right to speak up their minds and not be judged, to be allowed to think differently. But with _respect._ And _man _did that guy disrespected Spidey.

_"Breaking news,_— _"_

MJ didn't really listened to what the lady on tv said. It wasn't that she was indiferent because she didn't care. She just didn't want to work herself up over something she had no control over.

_"_— _Bank's being robbed, the police confirmed there's at least six hostages, two of which are hurt."_

She was about to turn off the tv, when she saw a flash of red pass in the background.

_"Spider-Man!"_ Tha lady exclaimed.

MJ smiled.

_"_— _Roger, aim! Aim over there!" _MJ chuckled as Spider-Man worked on saving the day and the camera guy struggled with getting a good filming of him. That guy sure was fast.

MJ smiled as she chewed her cereal and checked the hour.

_Damn._

She cleaned her mouth, put the bowl somewhere, took her keys and coat. She turned the tv off and left, closing the door behing her. She was late for work. She picked out her phone as she got into a cab. She dialed Richard's number and told the taxi driver tha Black Fat Cat's address. She decide to leave a message when he didn't pick up.

"Hey hun, I just wanted to remind you to check your agenda and make a spot for dinner with Peter and Gwen, okay? Love you. Take care." She hung up andput her phone in her bag. She looked out the window and saw she was stuck in the traffic jam. Both men and women were yelling from their respective cars and cabs, and for once she decided to just lay back an relax.

Things were finally working out for her, and no stressful New York or New Yorkers would get her mood down.

_Not even a traffic jam that would make her late for work._


End file.
